Marai knew she blew it when she came off of the ice. Her LP was listless and looked like she was just going threw the motions. I don't get all the sympathy. She has had more chances going to the Olympics and Worlds than any one skating tonight. She will never recapture the magic she had at 14 so I think she needs to move on. If Frank Caroll could do nothing with her. no one can. In my opinion the judges got it right. Ashley got a gift but even with her falls her program was far superior to Marai's.
I feel sorry for Mirai Nagasu
- Thread starter psbfan01
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- Joined
- Nov 12, 2011
i could not believe my eyes when i saw her scores after her skate. no it was not a good program, but 7th so much less than she deserved. the judging was so harsh to some skaters and generous to a few. my top 5 would have been
1. wagner or gold
2. wagner or gold
3. christina
4. mirai
5. agnes
although ashley was held up, she HAS proven herself this season to be for the most part reliable and a very strong competitor, but you have to remember she is still human. humans make mistakes, and they get nervous. she also just got over her injury and most recently food poisoning. i didn't fully expect her to skate like she was 100% healthy. keeping her in the top 2 was smart though, along with gold because they really are the US's best bets at worlds, and they CAN do it. i know it's not really fair considering all the great skates there were, but you can't complain about not having 3 spots if you're not going to send the most reliable or experienced skaters.
gold also proved herself here in the matter of TWO days that she is a fierce competitor. to pull it together in that short of a time period is so outstanding. with good skates these girls should have no problem getting 3 spots back. i have total confidence in ashley because of her mindset, and everyone knows that defending your title is the hardest the first time. who wouldn't have had nerves? ashley is hungry for gold and is out to win and will do anything to make that happen. i know she is going to train super hard for 4CC and worlds to make sure that kind of skate won't happen again. i also hope she throws in a 3+3 in the short and at least a 2A+3T in the long at 4CC to get her prepped for worlds.
christina was robbed of a medal. 5th was so undeserved, she skated so much more better than that. i don't know why USFSA is keeping agnes on the podium. i love her jumps, but as someone else said, what has she really accomplished as a senior, especially internationally? she has been a senior for 3 seasons now and she can't put together a clean short and long yet. she isn't reliable, whereas christina was fairly successful on the GP this season and even made the final. yes she had the mistake on the spin in her short, but what other reason does USFSA have to hold her down? nothing. agnes had more mistakes overall than her.
as for mirai, i am so heartbroken for her. even though i'm not her biggest fan i do support her and love certain aspects of her skating, and she worked so hard this past year. she made coaching changes, she has better programs, she is in better shape, and has been skating so much better than last year. the spark was starting to come back, and USFSA just blew it out. yes she is known for having many UR's throughout the years, but that program was better than 11th place and 7th overall, especially with her short program score. i was so sad to see her like that. i couldn't believe it.
as others have said, i think USFSA has officially said hasta la taco to mirai and caroline. even though agnes has been held up i think if she doens't show significant improvement before next year she will be written off, along with gao i am sad to say. they obviously don't think much of her for making her place 5th for the 4th time now. she deserves so much more. with these results i don't know how mirai, caroline, and gao will have the motivation to keep going. they pretty much told mirai last night she doesn't have a chance for sochi and obviously neither does caroline, and i will be a little surprised if they give christina a chance. if there are three spots, it will be ashley, gracie (which are two smart picks), and agnes, for whatever reason.
this sport is so unfair. the judging is going to push so many skaters away, no matter what level they're at. even the newbies were held down, and most of them skated lights out. hannah was underscored, as was ashley cain IMO. i don't know. i'm disappointed.
1. wagner or gold
2. wagner or gold
3. christina
4. mirai
5. agnes
although ashley was held up, she HAS proven herself this season to be for the most part reliable and a very strong competitor, but you have to remember she is still human. humans make mistakes, and they get nervous. she also just got over her injury and most recently food poisoning. i didn't fully expect her to skate like she was 100% healthy. keeping her in the top 2 was smart though, along with gold because they really are the US's best bets at worlds, and they CAN do it. i know it's not really fair considering all the great skates there were, but you can't complain about not having 3 spots if you're not going to send the most reliable or experienced skaters.
gold also proved herself here in the matter of TWO days that she is a fierce competitor. to pull it together in that short of a time period is so outstanding. with good skates these girls should have no problem getting 3 spots back. i have total confidence in ashley because of her mindset, and everyone knows that defending your title is the hardest the first time. who wouldn't have had nerves? ashley is hungry for gold and is out to win and will do anything to make that happen. i know she is going to train super hard for 4CC and worlds to make sure that kind of skate won't happen again. i also hope she throws in a 3+3 in the short and at least a 2A+3T in the long at 4CC to get her prepped for worlds.
christina was robbed of a medal. 5th was so undeserved, she skated so much more better than that. i don't know why USFSA is keeping agnes on the podium. i love her jumps, but as someone else said, what has she really accomplished as a senior, especially internationally? she has been a senior for 3 seasons now and she can't put together a clean short and long yet. she isn't reliable, whereas christina was fairly successful on the GP this season and even made the final. yes she had the mistake on the spin in her short, but what other reason does USFSA have to hold her down? nothing. agnes had more mistakes overall than her.
as for mirai, i am so heartbroken for her. even though i'm not her biggest fan i do support her and love certain aspects of her skating, and she worked so hard this past year. she made coaching changes, she has better programs, she is in better shape, and has been skating so much better than last year. the spark was starting to come back, and USFSA just blew it out. yes she is known for having many UR's throughout the years, but that program was better than 11th place and 7th overall, especially with her short program score. i was so sad to see her like that. i couldn't believe it.
as others have said, i think USFSA has officially said hasta la taco to mirai and caroline. even though agnes has been held up i think if she doens't show significant improvement before next year she will be written off, along with gao i am sad to say. they obviously don't think much of her for making her place 5th for the 4th time now. she deserves so much more. with these results i don't know how mirai, caroline, and gao will have the motivation to keep going. they pretty much told mirai last night she doesn't have a chance for sochi and obviously neither does caroline, and i will be a little surprised if they give christina a chance. if there are three spots, it will be ashley, gracie (which are two smart picks), and agnes, for whatever reason.
this sport is so unfair. the judging is going to push so many skaters away, no matter what level they're at. even the newbies were held down, and most of them skated lights out. hannah was underscored, as was ashley cain IMO. i don't know. i'm disappointed.
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- Joined
- Dec 4, 2004
From the trenches here in Omaha, the diehard fans I know that know way more than I do think that Ashley was given a early christmas present. So do I. We feel for and love Mirai but the poor girl is sick....its hard enough to skate when you are well...but the system needs change and that is a univeral feeling here amoung the fans....a fall is zero points. Period. Clean and artistic needs to be rewarded. There was a mens skater today who is very tall and skated a slow, artistic and well paced program....everyone enjoyed his artistry even though he was slow.
I dont know what will happen to Mirai...maybe she will pull a Mao and rework her jumps....maybe she goes away. I wish the best for her and for happiness no matter what happens. She has a tough decision just like Lynn and Logan do. Is it time to say goodbye and move on or not? I love this sport but it is very cruel. Me? I am just a fan that likes artisty. And if you were in the front row when Gracie Gold did her Free skate, you would have given her a standing ovation too...
I dont know what will happen to Mirai...maybe she will pull a Mao and rework her jumps....maybe she goes away. I wish the best for her and for happiness no matter what happens. She has a tough decision just like Lynn and Logan do. Is it time to say goodbye and move on or not? I love this sport but it is very cruel. Me? I am just a fan that likes artisty. And if you were in the front row when Gracie Gold did her Free skate, you would have given her a standing ovation too...
Chris, I would definitely love to hear what people out there in Omaha thought should have won the championship!
Didn't know she was sick. That explains the performance. Such a bad luck for Mirai. She deserves better.
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2010
I think at some point people need to stop pointing fingers at the USFSA and understand the skaters are accountable for what they put out there. Mirai's COC LP was arguably superior to her skate last night, yet at Nationals she scored almost 6 points higher. She has been docked points for underrotations all year and she failed to fully rotate a number of her jumps last night. The complaints should be directed to a scoring system that values falls over downgrades, not some conspiracy that the USFSA is trying to promote Gracie (with a 9th place SP) and slam Mirai (with her 3rd place SP).
- Joined
- Dec 4, 2004
Its funny that you should ask that cause I was just thinking that I heard NO ONE say this person or that person should have won....only that Ashley was overscored....the crowd as a whole booed Mirai's placement...our hearts broke. I have COPD. I have no idea how Mirai found the strenght to go out there with damaged lungs, etc and skate as well as she did. I have no idea what drugs they are allowed to take and not take....but I love her no matter what she does. Is she a girl? Is she too emotional? I refuse to critisize people on the ice here. Especially people who I have reason to believe are nice people off the ice. I dont have the courage to get out there in MY tutu and skate. I respect them all out on the ice. Some, Like Lynn and Logan, I love off the ice for what they do and what they will do for others. And some I hate for their poor sportsmanship and manners. But out there on the ice, well, MY tutu is going to rot in the closet....watch for me in the stands at SA and Boston! 
Its funny that you should ask that cause I was just thinking that I heard NO ONE say this person or that person should have won....only that Ashley was overscored....the crowd as a whole booed Mirai's placement...our hearts broke. I have COPD. I have no idea how Mirai found the strenght to go out there with damaged lungs, etc and skate as well as she did. I have no idea what drugs they are allowed to take and not take....but I love her no matter what she does. Is she a girl? Is she too emotional? I refuse to critisize people on the ice here. Especially people who I have reason to believe are nice people off the ice. I dont have the courage to get out there in MY tutu and skate. I respect them all out on the ice. Some, Like Lynn and Logan, I love off the ice for what they do and what they will do for others. And some I hate for their poor sportsmanship and manners. But out there on the ice, well, MY tutu is going to rot in the closet....watch for me in the stands at SA and Boston!
Well that's the problem for me. No matter how you spin it -- there really isn't anyone else who should have won instead of Ashley. I agree 7th for Mirai was harsh, I think she should have been at least top five.
- Joined
- Dec 4, 2004
Exactly. You can not discount Ashley's short program and the lead she had. Not like the old days....Ashley lost the free, fair and square. But she won the shooting match.
Having looked at the clips, IMO Ashley was simply relieved that she'd won, and wasn't rejoicing over Mirai's devastated reaction to her marks. Gracie of course wouldn't have been overjoyed that Ashley won, but at least was happy about going to Worlds after it seemed her SP would keep her out of the running.
- Joined
- Mar 12, 2007
chuckm, I completely agree.
Thank you, volk, for posting the clip. Oh, good heavens, Ashley was looking/facing forward and Mirai was on the monitor off to her side. She wasn't watching Mirai's reaction at the moment she gave a [quite brief] smile IMO at all. She made what was to me a wry smile -- the kind of expression one has when one is disappointed in oneself but something good happens anyway. Others have compared it to Mao and that is spot on. When you know you coulda and shoulda done better, but you still get the breaks, or when you know you squeaked by based on your early lead even if you faltered later -- you feel glad for winning and mad at yourself at the same time. That's what I read from Ashley's expressions.
I'm no Wagner fan, but I can't fault her here. I don't think she was noticing that her own reaction was coinciding with Mirai's image on a video monitor, for Pete's sake.
Definitely that camera shot, and all the cutting to the other skaters waiting for the results, was meant to induce drama. And apparently succeeded.
I do feel horrible for Mirai.
Thank you, volk, for posting the clip. Oh, good heavens, Ashley was looking/facing forward and Mirai was on the monitor off to her side. She wasn't watching Mirai's reaction at the moment she gave a [quite brief] smile IMO at all. She made what was to me a wry smile -- the kind of expression one has when one is disappointed in oneself but something good happens anyway. Others have compared it to Mao and that is spot on. When you know you coulda and shoulda done better, but you still get the breaks, or when you know you squeaked by based on your early lead even if you faltered later -- you feel glad for winning and mad at yourself at the same time. That's what I read from Ashley's expressions.
I'm no Wagner fan, but I can't fault her here. I don't think she was noticing that her own reaction was coinciding with Mirai's image on a video monitor, for Pete's sake.
Definitely that camera shot, and all the cutting to the other skaters waiting for the results, was meant to induce drama. And apparently succeeded.
I do feel horrible for Mirai.
I could not agree more. Marai is the one who is responsible for her poor skate. no one eles. And if she was really as sick as some claim than she should have withdrawn.
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2010
Looking over the skates again I actually think Nagasu was overplaced. She should have been about 9th. No way should she have beaten Cesario who had a beautiful skate. Seeing people even suggest she should have placed 2nd or 3rd is so off base with reality it is almost aggravating to read. Implying she should have ever beaten Christina Gao who had a wonderful skate (and was majorly screwed by the way) is just so wrong. The most anyone should even be arguing her placing is 6th. She made numerous mistakes on a day everyone else besides Ashley (who can afford mistakes for obvious reasons) and Agnes skated lights out, and her presentation and expression were almost non existent to boot.
I think you're probably right, but there's the added wrinkle of her illness, which is just one of those unfortunate cosmic downers that can't be foreseen or completely overcome.
I feel bad for Mirai but even worse for Caroline, who really seems to have given it her all, especially in the long program. I feel that Gao wuzrobbed, but at least with her I feel that she has some possibilities for her future. I don't really know how much of a future Caroline and Mirai have in the pecking order of American ladies, unless they take a quantum leap in their respective performance skills.
I feel bad for Mirai but even worse for Caroline, who really seems to have given it her all, especially in the long program. I feel that Gao wuzrobbed, but at least with her I feel that she has some possibilities for her future. I don't really know how much of a future Caroline and Mirai have in the pecking order of American ladies, unless they take a quantum leap in their respective performance skills.
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2013
I'm really sad for Mirai too. She has been working hard all year and I think she wanted this a lot more than she made it seem from her interviews. I hope she comes back and gives it another go for next season. First alternate at worlds in 2011, first alternate to the GPF (after being an alternate the previous two years) and now first alternate to Four Continents...It must be exceptionally frustrating for her, and I really hope next season will be much kinder to her. She'll have to work hard to fix those UR's, but if she does, I think she has a real shot at that Olympic team.
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2009
I'm so torn about Mirai.
She did so well in Vancouver (placing 4th) but since then she hasn't been able to capitalize on that and build her own momentum to carry her to Sochi. Her URs, inconsistent result, etc. since Vancouver are all on her, not on anybody else, and it's not the federation's fault or her competitors' fault that she can't rotate her jumps or that she's been very inconsistent. I'm sure her federation would've LOVED to have her be strong. I can't imagine the federation wanting its skaters to suck, and Mirai made her mark earlier than Ashley, so she could've been the "it" girl and gotten all the support.
She did so well in Vancouver (placing 4th) but since then she hasn't been able to capitalize on that and build her own momentum to carry her to Sochi. Her URs, inconsistent result, etc. since Vancouver are all on her, not on anybody else, and it's not the federation's fault or her competitors' fault that she can't rotate her jumps or that she's been very inconsistent. I'm sure her federation would've LOVED to have her be strong. I can't imagine the federation wanting its skaters to suck, and Mirai made her mark earlier than Ashley, so she could've been the "it" girl and gotten all the support.
It's really interesting to watch how this thread is developing. I actually FINALLY got to watch the skate instead of just studying the protocols and speculating based on what others have said. It was much better than I had anticipated!
Granted I'm not a skating professional and I fully admit to lacking always telling when a jump is UR, but I've been watching the sport closely since '98 and for my money the only triples that were "obviously" UR in real time were the second loop and flip. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Could someone explain to me why she got a deduction for a fall? I thought your butt had to hit the ice. I don't think that happened...
Anyway regardless of the UR I send so much love and respect her way for what she did. You could see her fighting throughout the entire program, and also see her struggling. She also looked surprisingly calm and focused when it comes to being "mentally" prepared. She was. In fact, I would argue that if she had been healthy she would have been "2010" mentally ready to go. Jumps aside it was still one of my favorite skates of the night.
I noticed Mirai has posted on twitter saying "So grateful to everyone who supported me last night
thank you." then she congratulated everyone in Omaha.
Also I know it's been posted in another thread, but USFSA did announce international assignments and she was named 3rd alternate to worlds and 1st alternate to 4CC. I'm sure that in part this is because Yasmin, Samantha, and Courtney were assigned Junior Worlds, but I think (hope) it's also that USFSA is trying to find a way to tell her she's not out of the game yet if she doesn't want to be.
Last year, Scott and Tracy did nothing but dump on Mirai during her skate, this year they really seemed supportive of her, which I'm willing to bet reflects a shift in the winds in others' perceptions of her.
Granted I'm not a skating professional and I fully admit to lacking always telling when a jump is UR, but I've been watching the sport closely since '98 and for my money the only triples that were "obviously" UR in real time were the second loop and flip. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Could someone explain to me why she got a deduction for a fall? I thought your butt had to hit the ice. I don't think that happened...
Anyway regardless of the UR I send so much love and respect her way for what she did. You could see her fighting throughout the entire program, and also see her struggling. She also looked surprisingly calm and focused when it comes to being "mentally" prepared. She was. In fact, I would argue that if she had been healthy she would have been "2010" mentally ready to go. Jumps aside it was still one of my favorite skates of the night.
I noticed Mirai has posted on twitter saying "So grateful to everyone who supported me last night
thank you." then she congratulated everyone in Omaha. Also I know it's been posted in another thread, but USFSA did announce international assignments and she was named 3rd alternate to worlds and 1st alternate to 4CC. I'm sure that in part this is because Yasmin, Samantha, and Courtney were assigned Junior Worlds, but I think (hope) it's also that USFSA is trying to find a way to tell her she's not out of the game yet if she doesn't want to be.
Last year, Scott and Tracy did nothing but dump on Mirai during her skate, this year they really seemed supportive of her, which I'm willing to bet reflects a shift in the winds in others' perceptions of her.
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2008
Mirai's second 3Loop getting a << call was total crap, but otherwise the calls were correct. I could see all 4 of her < in real time (5 when we count the double toeloop she underrotated). The 3Toe and the first 3Flip were close, but still short. There was a noticeable lack of zing in the jumps throughout the whole program, which made her performance even more lifeless. She was a skating zombie out there most of the time. 7th overall is where she deserved to end up, sadly, and 11th in the LP was fair too.
Mirai's 2nd loop was right in front of me and it was very obviously underrotated so I wasn't surprised it was downgraded. I agree Mirai looked lifeless out there, as if she were on autopilot, and rateher slow. I wasn't shocked when her mark and placement were announced.
Mirai is the only one who can determine where to go from there. She either works hard on her jumps so she has more spring and can complete the rotations, and picks music that moves her emotionally so she can show that emotion when she skates. She needs to do both to do a complete turnaround. It's up to her.
Mirai is the only one who can determine where to go from there. She either works hard on her jumps so she has more spring and can complete the rotations, and picks music that moves her emotionally so she can show that emotion when she skates. She needs to do both to do a complete turnaround. It's up to her.
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